Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP5373
Authors: Oded Galor; Omer Moav
Abstract: This research advances an evolutionary growth theory that captures the pattern of life expectancy in the process of development, shedding new light on the sources of the remarkable rise in life expectancy since the Agricultural Revolution. The theory suggests that social, economic and environmental changes that were associated with the transition from hunter-gatherer tribes to sedentary agricultural communities and ultimately to urban societies affected the nature of the environmental hazards confronted by the human population, triggering an evolutionary process that had a significant impact on the time path of human longevity.
Keywords: evolution; growth; life expectancy; Malthusian stagnation; natural selection; technological progress
JEL Codes: I12; J13; N3; O10
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| social, economic, and environmental transitions (P28) | changes in environmental hazards (Q54) |
| changes in environmental hazards (Q54) | evolutionary adaptations (B52) |
| changes in environmental hazards (Q54) | extrinsic mortality risk (J17) |
| extrinsic mortality risk (J17) | genetic predispositions for higher somatic investment (J79) |
| genetic predispositions for higher somatic investment (J79) | life expectancy (J17) |
| improvements in health infrastructure and medical technology (I15) | life expectancy (J17) |
| transition from hunter-gatherer societies to agricultural communities (P32) | exposure to environmental hazards (Q53) |
| transition from hunter-gatherer societies to agricultural communities (P32) | extrinsic mortality risk (J17) |
| initial declines in life expectancy during the Neolithic period (J17) | long-term evolutionary adaptations (B52) |